Select Specialty's 'hospital within a hospital' an alternative model

When they no longer need to be in an intensive care unit, some of Wichita's sickest patients end up at Select Specialty Hospitals, a private for-profit "hospital within a hospital" that operates on the fifth and sixth floors of Via Christi Hospital on St. Francis.

A story in today's Wichita Eagle examines the unconventional model of health care. Select Specialty Hospital has its own nurses, respiratory therapists, pharmacy and case managers, with almost all staff focused intensely on patient care, the Wichita CEO, Peggy Cliffe, tells the Eagle. But by operating inside a fully functional hospital, they have easy access to doctors, labs, housekeeping and other services.

Select Specialty Hospitals has more than 100 locations across the country.